World News - Bush Leans on Adviser Hubbard to Deliver on a Diminished Agenda

For political advice, President George W. Bush turns to longtime confidant Karl Rove. On the economy, Bush relies on someone he's known even longer: Indiana businessman Al Hubbard. As director of the White House's National Economic Council, Hubbard is one of the least visible yet most influential members of Bush's inner circle, current and former administration officials say. While he's kept a low profile since taking the job a year ago, his stamp on policy-making is emerging. ``Hubbs'' -- as Bush calls his friend of 30 years -- worked for two decades on health-care issues while he was making millions in business. His interest in loosening government constraints on insurers, drugmakers and providers now is rising to the top of a constrained 2006 Bush agenda, which will be announced in the Jan. 31 State of the Union address. ... http://quote.bloomberg.com

Ehud Olmert, Israel's acting leader since Prime Minister Ariel Sharon suffered a massive stroke Jan. 4, got the nod to Monday lead his party's ticket in upcoming elections. Olmert's decision to stand in as leader of the Kadima Party he co-founded with Sharon gives him a strong chance to become the next prime minister.Olmert's selection by Kadima came a day after Israel's attorney general ruled that Olmert would remain acting prime minister until elections March 28.With Sharon, 77, still in critical condition and unconscious at Hadassah Hospital, Olmert has quietly taken charge. The March vote will show whether Israelis support Olmert's view that a Palestinian state will help bring peace and security to the region — a view shared by Sharon and President Bush....http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2006-01-16-israel-olmert_x.htm?csp=34

Call it a case of why you should be careful what you wish for.President Bush's efforts to spread democracy to the Middle East have strengthened Islamists across the region, posing fresh challenges for the United States, according to U.S. officials, foreign diplomats and democracy experts.Islamist parties trounced secular opponents in recent elections in Iraq and Egypt.Hamas, the armed Islamic Palestinian group, appears set to fare well in Palestinian parliamentary elections Jan. 25, posing a quandary for how the United States and Israel pursue peace efforts. Hamas has carried out suicide bombings against Israel and calls for the country's destruction.In Lebanon, the Shiite Muslim militia Hezbollah is part of the government for the first time.Washington considers Hezbollah and Hamas, both of which have Iranian support, to be terrorist groups."In the short run, the big windfall winners ... have been the Islamists," ...http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2002742696_mideastdem16.html

One month after Iraq's Dec. 15 election, a shift is afoot that will probably weaken Shiite political clout as the country's factions enter serious negotiations to form a new government. Increasingly, the US is throwing its weight in Iraq behind Sunni Arabs, about 20 percent of the country, to ensure they are part of a new coalition government. Analysts say the US is convinced reconciliation with Sunni Arabs will help stop the insurgency. There is also an American unease with the growing influence of Iran on Iraq's dominant Shiite bloc. But Shiite leaders have responded defiantly, threatening unflinching stands that could push the country closer to full-scale civil war. Most notably, Abdul Aziz al-Hakim, the head of the Supreme Council for Islamic Revolution in Iraq (SCIRI), among the most influential Shiite leaders, last week rejected any major changes to the Iraqi Constitution. The right to amend the Constitution was a last-minute US-brokered clause instrumental to getting ...http://www.csmonitor.com/2006/0117/p01s01-woiq.html

Former Mayor Bill Campbell, who presided over Atlanta during its most prosperous period in recent history, a span that included the 1996 Olympics, is returning to defend himself and his administration in a federal corruption trial. Mr. Campbell is accused of accepting more than $160,000 in illegal campaign contributions, cash, junkets and home improvements in exchange for city contracts. The 52-year-old charismatic ex-politician -- once considered a rising star in the national Democratic Party -- is charged with seven counts of racketeering, fraud and bribery. The trial, which starts with jury selection today, follows a seven-year federal probe into corruption at City Hall that lasted almost as long as Mr. Campbell's 1994-2002 tenure as leader of the South's largest city. The investigation led to the convictions of 10 former city officials and contractors, all tied to the Campbell administration. ...http://www.washtimes.com/national/20060116-101520-6577r.htm

The U.S. Agency for International Development paints a dire and detailed picture of the Iraq security situation in its request for contractors to bid on its $1.32 billion, 28-month project to help stabilize 10 major Iraqi cities. The USAID program, outlined in a Jan. 2 paper, envisions development between 2006 and 2008 of partnerships in cities that make up more than half of Iraq's population. Those cities would include Baghdad, Basra, Mosul, Kirkuk and Najaf. The project, which to date has only $30 million of the proposed funds, will try to reduce violence by creating jobs, revitalizing community infrastructure, and mitigating ethnic and religious conflicts. To prepare potential bidders for the task, USAID included an annex with the contractor application. It describes Iraq as being in the midst of an insurgency whose tactics "include ...http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/01/16/AR2006011601005_pf.html